Notation
Note: The tunes below are recorded in what
is called “abc notation.” They
can easily be converted to standard musical notation via highlighting with
your cursor starting at “X:1” through to the end of the abc’s, then
“cutting-and-pasting” the highlighted notation into one of the many abc
conversion programs available, or at concertina.net’s incredibly handy “ABC
Convert-A-Matic” at

**Please note that the abc’s in the Fiddler’s
Companion work fine in most abc conversion programs. For example, I use
abc2win and abcNavigator 2 with no problems whatsoever with direct
cut-and-pasting. However, due to an anomaly of the html, pasting the abc’s
into the concertina.net converter results in double-spacing. For
concertina.net’s conversion program to work you must remove the spaces
between all the lines of abc notation after pasting, so that they are
single-spaced, with no intervening blank lines. This being done, the F/C
abc’s will convert to standard notation nicely. Or, get a copy of
abcNavigator 2 – its well worth it.[AK]

HUMOURS/HUMORS OF … Brendan Breathnach (1996) says the word
‘humours’ in a title denotes character, mood and exuberance of spirit. It has
also been described as a whim, fancy or caprice. It is used only in combination
with a placename and always precedes it. “The Humours of Dublin” and “The Humours
of Billingsgate” can be found in London dance music collections as far back as
the mid-18th century.

HUMOURS OF BAILE NA
FEAD, THE. Irish, Double Jig. Ireland, County
Donegal. Collected in 1903 by Padraig Mac Aodh O’Neill from the playing of
Fawans, Kilmacrennan, Donegal, farmer and schoolmaster Proinseas Mac Suibhne,
who learned it from Robert Sproule of Dromore, Kilmacrennan. It is published in
Mac Aodh O’Neill’s Song of Uladh.

HUMOURS
OF BALLINAMULT, THE. AKA and see “Irish Pelt,” “Jackson’s Sport,” “Prátaí Dearga is Bláthach.”
Irish, Jig. E Dorian. Standard tuning. AABBCC. Ballinamult is in County
Waterford, near the border with County Tipperary and the town of "Cluain
Meala" (Clonmel). The alternate title “Jackson’s Sport,” a county Leitrim
title for the tune unearthed by Brendan Breathnach (1996), refers to the 18th
century Irish gentleman-composer Walker "Piper" Jackson, of the
townland of Lisdaun, parish of Ballingarry, Aughrim, County Limerick. The tune
was first printed as “The Humour of Ballinamult” in O'Farrell's Pocket Companion for the Irish or Union
Pipes (vol. I, pg. 54), c. 1805, along with other tunes with County
Waterford names and associations. The Scots publisher James Aird, however, had previously
published it in Glasgow at the end of the 18th century under the
title “Irish Pelt” in his Selection of
Scotch, English, Irish and Foreign Airs (vol. 3, 1788). Goodman printed a version called “Prátaí Darga is Bláthach.” Kennedy
(Jigs & Quicksteps, Trips & Humours), 1997; No. 61, pg. 16.
O’Farrell (Pocket Companion, vol. 1),
c. 1805; pg. 54. Jerry
O’Sullivan – “O’Sullivan Meets O’Farrell” (2005).

X:1

T:Humour of Ballinamult, The

M:6/8

L:1/8

R:Jig

S:O’Farrell – Pocket
Companion, vol. 1 (c. 1805)

Z:AK/Fiddler’s
Companion

K:E Dorian

A | B3 EFE | BAG FED | B3 EFE | BAB dAF | B3 EFE | BAG FED |

A3D FDF | A3 AGF :: EFE E2F | DED D2F | EFE E2B | B3 BAF |

EFE E2F | DED DFG | A3D FDF | A3 AGF :: B2c d2e | fdB AGF |

B2c d2e | f2e fdB | B2c d2e | fdB AGF | DED FDF | A3 AGF :|

HUMOURS OF
BALLINARAHEEN. Irish, Jig. E Minor. Standard
tuning. AABB. The ‘B’ part is shared with the tunes “The Humours of Winnington,” and with the “Bottle of Punch” family of tunes.
Source for notated version: "Patrick MacDowell, the distinguished
sculptor" (1799‑1870) {Joyce}. Joyce (Old Irish Folk Music and Songs), 1909; No. 520, pg. 281.

HUMORS OF BALLINLASS, THE (Sugra Baile-an-Leasa). AKA and see “The Chancellor,” “Feis Hornpipe.” Irish, Hornpipe. G Major.
Standard tuning. AABB'. “The Chancellor” title was used for this tune by North
Kerry fiddler Paddy O’Sullivan, says Paul de Grae, who says he “always assumed
that the title was a reference to Chancellor Bismark, but have not a shred of
evidence to support that notion.” Cotter (Traditional
Irish Tin Whistle Tutor), 1989; 34. O'Neill (Dance Music of Ireland: 1001 Gems), 1907/1986; No. 942, pg. 161.

HUMOURS
OF BALLYHEIGE. Irish, Reel. G Major. Standard
tuning. AB. Source for notated version: the Rice-Walsh manuscript, a collection
of music from the repertoire of Jeremiah Breen, a blind fiddler from North
Kerry, notated by his student [O’Neill]. O’Neill (Waifs and Strays of Gaelic Melody), 1922; No. 278.

Z:Jeff Myers: A simplified version
of the tune as transcribed by Richard Cook

Z:from a handout at Calif. Trad.
Music. Soc. 1995 festival.

M:6/8

K:ADor

~A3 {B}AGE|{A}GED ~D3|cBc ded|cAG
{FG}FED|

~A3 {B}AGE|~G3 cGE|~D3 {G}DFA|~D3
{G}D2 z:|

cBc {d}cBc|{d}cAG ABc|{dg}ded
{g}ded|{g}dAF DFA|

c {d}c {G}c d z B|cAG {FG}FGE|~D3
{G}DFA|~D3 {G}D2 z:|

{a}fdd {a}gdd|{a}fdd {a}gdd|c2e
{a}ged|B/2c/2de {a}ged|

{a}fdd {a}gdd|~f2a ged|cde gag|ed^c
d z e:|

~A2D ~A2G|~F3 GED|~E3 {A}EFD|~E3
{A}EFG|

~A3 dAG|~F3 GEA|~D3 {G}DFA|~D3 {G}D2
z:||

HUMORS OF BALLYMANUS (Sugra Baile-Meadonac). AKA and see "Jig Polthogue," "Polthogue (Jig)," "Pilib McCue." Irish, Slip Jig. D Major.
Standard tuning. AABB (Roche): AABBCC (O'Neill). The town of Ballymanus
is in County Wicklow, and is the birthplace in 1775 of William Byrne, the famous
‘Billy Byrne of Ballymanus’, a leader of Wicklow men in Rebellion of 1798.
Byrne was a member of one of the last great landed Catholic families in the
region and a tall and powerful young man.During the lead-up to the rebellion he refused to take a Test Oath and
was dismissed from the loyalist Wicklow Yeoman Calvalry. He subsequently threw
in his lot with the rebels and fought at Arklow and Vinegar Hill, leading in
battle what was called the Ballymanus Division. After the defeat of the United
Irishmen Byrne went into hiding, but eventually was caught, tried and hung as a
traitor. O’Farrell (Pocket Companion, vol. 1), c. 1805; pgs.
38-39. O'Neill (Krassen), 1976; pg. 80. O'Neill (Music of Ireland: 1850
Melodies), 1903/1979; No. 1124, pg. 212. O'Neill (Dance Music of
Ireland: 1001 Gems), 1907/1986;
No. 417, pg. 83. Roche Collection,
1983, Vol. 2; No. 256, pg. 25.

HUMOURS
OF BANDON, THE (Sugra
Droiciod-Na-Bandann). AKA and see “Humours of Listivain,”
“The Jolly Old Woman,” “The Merry Old Woman [3],” “Plangsty
Callagh,” “Terry’s Rambles,” “(An) tSeanbhean Sultmhar.” Irish,
Set Dance (6/8 time). G Major/Mixolydian. Standard tuning. AABB. A Whig tune
having eight bars in the 'A' part and sixteen bars in the second. It was known
as far back as 1690 when the Irish (who had learned it from the supporters of William
III) played it when they sacked Kilbrogan (Winstock, 1970, pg. 26). As “The
Humours of Listivain” it appears in Jackson’s
Celebrated Irish Tunes, published in Dublin by Samuel Lee around 1775
(reprinted in 1790), a collection of tunes from gentleman piper Walker ‘Piper’
Jackson of the townland of Lisduan in the parish of Ballingarry, Aughrim,
County Limerick. The tune was still current in 19th century County Limerick,
for O’Neill (1913) mentions a retired Chicago policeman colleague remembered
having danced it in his boyhood to the piping of Newcastle-West
gentleman-musician Jack Moore. The title appears in the John Carroll manuscript
of dance music entrusted to the Newberry Library in Chicago. Carroll was
apparently stationed at Fort Niagara in the early 19th century and the dates
1804 and 1812 appear contained in the pages of the manuscript. Some believe
“Humors of Bandon” to be a distanced version of “The Black Joke.” Fiddler James
Morrison (1893-1947), originally from Drumfin, County Sligo, recorded the tune
in New York in February, 1923. Source for notated version: New Jersey flute
player Mike Rafferty, born in Ballinakill, Co. Galway, in 1926 [Harker]. Allan's Irish Fiddler, No. 109, pg. 28.
Harker (300 Tunes from Mike Rafferty),
2005; No. 297, pg. 97. Kennedy (Jigs & Quicksteps, Trips &
Humours), 1997; No. 63, pg. 16. O'Neill (O’Neill’s Irish Music),
1915/1987; No. 391, pg. 187. O'Neill (Krassen), 1976; pg. 224. O'Neill (Music
of Ireland: 1850 Melodies), 1903/1979; No. 786, pg. 146. O'Neill (Dance
Music of Ireland: 1001 Gems),
1907/1986; No. 977, pg. 168. Roche
Collection, 1983, vol. 2; No. 272, pg. 30. Cló
Iar-Chonnachta CICD 148, Mick Conneely – “Selkie” (2001). Shanachie 34013, Liz
Carroll - “A Friend Indeed.” Shanachie 34016, Joe Burke & Andy McGann -
“The Funny Reel.”

HUMORS OF CAPPA [2], THE (Sugra na/an Ceapaig). AKA – “Humours of Caggagh.” AKA and
see “Humours of Ennistymon.” Irish,
Double Jig. D Major. Standard tuning. AAB. Not related to version #1, but it is
almost the same as the first two parts of "Cherish the Ladies." See also
the note for “Thought,” where Goodman
attributes his version to the 18th century gentleman composer Walker
‘Piper’ Jackson. Bulmer & Sharpley (Music
from Ireland), vol. 3; 49. O'Neill (Music
of Ireland: 1850 Melodies), 1903/1979; No. 779, pg. 145. O'Neill (Dance Music of Ireland: 1001 Gems),
1907/1986; No. 56, pg. 26.

HUMORS OF CASTLE
BERNARD, THE (Sugra
Caislean-Bernaird). AKA and see “Bernardo’s
Favorite.” Irish, Hornpipe. D Major. Standard tuning. AABB. A close
relative of this tune is the Donegal hornpipe “Joe Cassidy’s Hornpipe.” Some
similarities to “High Level
(Hornpipe) [1].” There are two Castle Bernards in Ireland, points out
Séamus Connolly. One, in County Cork, was the seat of the O’Mahony Clan,
formerly known as Castle Mahon. The second was in County Offaly, home of the
sixth Lord Decies, and was also known as Kinnitty Castle. The tune was recorded
on 78 RPM in the 1930’s by the Dublin Metropolitan Garda Céilí Band, and a few
decades later by the Gallowglass Céilí Band (All-Ireland Champions in 1953,
1954, and 1955). Connolly & Martin (Forget
Me Not), 2002; pgs. 44-45. O'Neill (Krassen), 1976; pg. 214. O'Neill (Music of Ireland: 1850 Melodies),
1903/1979; No. 1770, pg. 330. O'Neill (Dance
Music of Ireland: 1001 Gems), 1907/1986; No. 935, pg. 160. Cló Iar Chonnachta CICD 165, John Wynne & John McEvoy –
“Pride of the West” (2007).

HUMORS OF CORK [2]. AKA and see “Katie’s Fancy.” Irish, Jig. G Major. Standard
tuning. AABB. Source for notated version: manuscripts in the possession of
Chicago Police Sergeant James O’Neill, originally from County Down, many from
his father [O’Neill]. O’Neill (Waifs and
Strays of Gaelic Melody), 1922; No. 165.

HUMOURS OF DUBLIN [1]. English, Jig. England,
Northumberland. F Major. Standard tuning. AABB. The melody first appears in
Walsh’s Caledonian Country Dances,
also published in his Fourth Book of the
Compleat Country Dancing Master (London, 1747). Vickers’ is an identical
version. Source for notated version: the 1770 music manuscript collection of
William Vickers (Northumberland), about whom, unfortunately, nothing is known
[Seattle]. Seattle (William Vickers),
1987, Part 2; No. 351.

HUMOURS OF DUBLIN [3].AKA – “The Slowmen of London.” English, Jig
(6/8 or 6/4 time). F Major. Standard tuning. The melody appears in Walsh’s Third Book of the Compleat Country Dancing
Master (London, 1735), his Compleat
Country Dancing Master, volume the Third (London, c. 1749), and Johnson’s
publication of Daniel Wright’s Compleat
Collection of Celebrated Country Dances (London, c. 1740, where the
alternate title “The Slowmen of London” appears). The melody also appears in John and William
Neal’s Choice Collection of Country
Dances (Dublin, c. 1726). Barnes (English Country Dance Tunes, vol. 2), pg. 62.

HUMORS OF ENNISTYMON
[1], THE. AKA and see “Bliven’s Favorite,” "By your leave, Larry Grogan,"
"Coppers and Brass [2]",
“The County Limerick Buckhunt,"
"Finerty's Frolic," “Green Sleeves [3],” “Groom,” "Hartigan's
Fancy," "The Humours of
Miltown [2],” "Larry Grogan('s)
[1]," "The Lasses of Melrose," “Lasses of Melross,” “Linn’s Favourite,” "Little Fanny's Fancy,"
"Lynny's Favourite," “Paddy’s
the Boy,” "Pingneacha Rua agus Pras," “Queen of the Rushes,” "The Waves of Tramore," “Willie Clancy’s.” Irish, Jig. G Major.
Standard tuning. AABBCC (Flaherty, Mallinson, O’Neill): AABBCC’ (Mulvihill).
The name Ennistymon is derived from the Irish Inis Díomáin, or (St.) Diomán’s
Island, and is locally pronounced ‘Ennis-sty-mun’. The tune is one of a large
tune family whose most famous member is perhaps “Larry Grogan.” Seán Keane was
of the opinion it was a Clare tune, and indeed, Ennistymon is a town in North
Clare. In the liner notes for the album “Clare Concertinas: Bernard O’Sullivan
and Tommy McMahon,” Muiris Ó Rochain writes that County Sligo/New York fiddler
Michael Coleman adapted the tune “Coppers and Brass” by adding a third part,
the whole of which he renamed “The Humours of Ennistymon.” Ó Rochain thinks
this was in honor of Martin Clancy, a native of Ennistymon. Gearóid Ó
hAllmhuráin (1999) believes that travelling piper Johnny Doran popularized the
tune in Clare in the 1930’s and 1940’s, playing it as “Coppers and Brass,” and
that it is thought in Clare that Doran composed the third part of the tune. Micho
Russell (1915-1944), tin-whistle player and a storehouse of folk tales and
traditional lore, had his own fanciful thoughts and associations about the
tune, which he would relate by way of introduction of the music. “There’s a jig
called ‘The Humours of Ennistymon’ and Captain O’Neill in Chicago, the music
collector, had only two parts got in his collection. So he met a man from
Ennistymon and the man from Ennistymon had the third part. So I think that was
one of the reasons that it was called ‘The Humours of Ennistymon’” (Piggott, Blooming Meadows, 1998). The tune
appears in O’Neill’s Music of Ireland
(1903) as the two-part “Hartigan’s Fancy.” In fact, both tune and title appear
older than O’Neill and the above-referenced 20th century musicians,
since “The Humours of Ennistymon” appears in the Goodman manuscripts (volume
III, 152), collected by James Goodman from the playing Munster musicians in the
mid-1800’s, predating all the above references. James Aird (c. 1790) published a variant as
“The Lasses of Melross.” Breathnach
remarks that the first printed version was by John Walsh before 1736 in Country Dances Book the Second under the
title “Larry Grogan,” named for the County Wexford gentleman piper of the
early-mid 1700's. See also note for “Groom.”
Source for notated version:
fiddler Michael Lennihan (b. 1917, Kilnamanagh, in the Frenchpart area of
County Roscommon) [Flaherty]. Bulmer & Sharpley (Music from Ireland), 1974, vol. 3, No. 49. Flaherty (Trip to Sligo), 1990; pg. 88. Mallinson
(Enduring), 1995; No. 54, pg. 24.
Mulvihill (1st Collection),
1986; No. 43, pg. 7. O'Neill (Krassen), 1976; pg. 28. Celtic Crossings CD0299-02, Gearóid Ó hAllmhuráin
& Patrick Ourceau – “Tracin” (1999. Learned from East Clare fiddler Paddy
Canny). Claddagh Records CC17, Seán Keane ‑
"Gusty's Frolics" (1975). Green Linnet SIF1122, Kevin Burke -
"Open House" (1992). Philo 1051, Boys of the Lough ‑ "Good
Friends, Good Music" (1977).

HUMOURS OF GLEN [1], THE. AKA and see “Good Morrow to Your Night-Cap,”
“Humors of Glynn [2].” Scottish, Jig. A
Minor. Standard tuning. AABBCC. There is a "Humours of Glen"
appearing (ascribed to no one) in the McLean
Collection published by James Johnson in Edinburgh in 1772. The melody
(with variation sets) also appears in the 1840 music manuscript collection of
Cumbrian musician John Rook. Cazden (et al, 1982) finds variants of this tune,
or significant phrases from it, in use as the melody of Catskill Mountain New
York folksongs (see discussions of "The Cumberland Crew," "The
Blantyre Explosion," "The Lost Jimmy Whalen" in Folksongs of the Catskills). Gow directs
“Slowish.” Carlin (The Gow Collection),
1986; No. 335. Gow (Complete Repository),
Part 2, 1802; pg. 12.

HUMORS OF GLYNN/GLIN
[1] (Sugra/Plearaca na
Gleanna). AKA
and see “The Cullen Jig,” “Good Morrow to Your Night-Cap,”
“Humors of Glen [2],” “Jackson’s Hornpipe [1],” “Padraig O’Keeffe’s (Jig) [1],”
“Sligo Rambler [2],” “Tho’ Lexlip
is Proud,” "Thomas Leixlip,
the Proud," "A Virgin Wife and Widow." Irish, Air (6/8 time,
"cheerfully"). B Minor. Standard tuning. AB (Mitchell, O’Farrell,
O’Neill): AABB (Tolman): AABCCDDEEF (Roche). This air was supposedly composed
by the blind Irish harper Turlough O'Carolan (1670-1738), according to Irish
musicologist Grattan Flood (whose attributions are much too often suspect),
with words by Pierce Power, of Glynn, County Waterford. Edward Daly (Poets and Poetry of Munster) and Francis
O’Neill (1913), however, credit composition of the entire piece to Power, who
is identified as a “gentleman piper” from Glynn, and who composed the piece in
the first quarter of the 18th century. Glynn, explains O’Neill, was
at one time a small romantic country village that straddled the border between
Counties Waterford and Tipperary on either side of the Suir, not far from Clonmel.
It was anciently the seat of the influential Power(s) family. The song was an
especial favorite with the Scots national poet Robert Burns, who used the air
for his song "Their groves of sweet myrtle let foreign lands reckon."
“Humors of Glen” appears in R.A. Smith’s The
Irish Minstrel (Edinburgh, 1825) and McGoun’s Repository of Scots and Irish Airs (Glasgow, 1803); in the latter
publication it is published with eight sets of variations. Flood (1906) notes
that O'Keefe, previous to this, had also set this air to a song he called
"Though Leixlip is proud" (corrupted by O’Neill into “Thomas Leixlip
the Proud”). Under the Leixlip title it appeared in William Sheild’s opera Poor Soldier (1783).

***

The melody exists in both air and
jig versions: famous early 20th century piper Patsy Tuohey recorded
the tune set as a jig under the title “The Sligo Rambler,” while Miltown Mabay
piper Willie Clancy played it as an elaborate set piece. “Humors of Glynn” is
known as a piping “piece,” a showcase tune for the uilleann piper (see also “Nora Criona/Wise Nora”). O’Neill (1913) records
it was played by piper Peter Cunningham (who lived in the 19th century in
County Kildare) on his deathbed, and Gearóid Ó hAllmhuráin says the tune is
associated with the West Clare piper Garret Barry (1847-1899). Cork piper
Daniel O’Leary, known as the Duhallow Piper, famously played the tune, which at
one hearing so impressed a correspondent for the Dublin Penny Journal of October 1834, that he declared O’Leary’s
rendering in his estimation the ne plus
ultra of bagpipe music (Breathnach, 1997). Source for notated version:
piper Willie Clancy (1918-1973, Miltown Malbay, west Clare) [Mitchell]. Ceol, vol. IV, No. 22. Mitchell (Dance Music of Willie Clancy), 1993; No.
54, pg. 61. O’Farrell (Pocket Companion
for the Irish or Union Pipes), c. 1805-1810; No. 1, pg. 12 (appears as
“Humours of Glen”). O'Neill (Music of
Ireland: 1850 Melodies), 1903/1979; No. 176, pg. 31. Roche Collection, 1983, vol. 1; No. 36, pg. 18. Tolman (Nelson Music Collection), 1969; pg. 6
(appears as "Humours of Glen"). Jerry
O’Sullivan – “O’Sullivan meets O’Farrell” (2005). Drumlin Records BMNCD2, Brian
McNamara – “Fort of the Jewels” (2004). The McNamara Family – “Letrim’s Hidden
Treasure” (1998. A version from the Stephen Greir manuscript, Leitrim).

HUMORS OF LISADEL {Pléaraca Lios an Daill}. AKA “Humours of Lissadell.” AKA and
see "The Musical Bridge."
Irish, Reel. E Minor. Standard tuning. AABB. Lissadell is a place name from
County Sligo, the subject of some of the writings of the poet Yeats. The tune
was the composition of the great fiddler John McGrath (1900-1965) of Co. Mayo
and New York, according to his nephew Vincent McGrath, and was originally
titled "The Musical Bridge," after a structure in Belmullet. However,
other’s dispute the claim for McGrath. Breathnach (1963) notes that Boston
button accordion player Jerry O’Brien has a setting of this tune in his Irish Folk Dance Music (168). The tune
was popularized by south Sligo fiddler Paddy Killoran (1894-1974), an immigrant
to New York City.

HUMORS
OF LISTIVAIN. AKA and see “Humours of Bandon,” “The Jolly Old Woman,” “The Merry Old Woman [3],” “Plangsty
Callagh,” “Terry’s Rambles,” “(An) tSeanbhean Sultmhar.” Similar
to "The Nuptial Knot,” "Spirits of Whiskey [2],"
"Three Little Drummers
[1]." Irish, Jig. C Major. Standard tuning. AABB. As “The Humours of
Listivain” it appears in Jackson’s
Celebrated Irish Tunes, a collection from the famous 18th
century gentleman piper Walker ‘Piper’ Jackson of the townland of Lisduan in
the parish of Ballingarry, Aughrim, County Limerick, printed by Samuel Lee in
Dublin around 1775 (reprinted in 1790). However, it appears the tune is older
than this, for as “The Humours of Bandon” it was known as far back as 1690 when
the Irish (who had learned it from the supporters of William III) played it
when they sacked Kilbrogan (Winstock, 1970, pg. 26). The melody appears in the
Goodman manuscripts as “An tseanbhean sultmhar,” in the Pigot collection as
“Plangsty Callagh,” and in Pádraig Ó Néill’s manuscript collection as “Terry’s
Rambles.” Two similar alternate titles appear in the Forde collection(“The Jolly Old Woman”) and in
Stanford/Petrie (“The Merry Old Woman”). O’Neill (1922) remarks: “(Aird’s)
setting of which there are several variants, is no doubt the original. In O'Farrell's National Irish Music for the
Union Pipes, 1797-1800, a tune named "Jerry's Rambles" closely
follows it. More distinct variants are "The Jolly Old Woman" and
"The Humors of Bandon", the latter as printed in O'Neill's Dance Music of Ireland being the arrangement favored by
modern dancers.” See note for
Bayard (Hill Country Tunes), 1944,
No. 46. Source for notated version: copied from Aird’s Selections of Scotch, English, Irish and Foreign Airs (1782-97)
[O’Neill]. Bayard (Hill Country Tunes),
1944; No. 46 (appears as "Quadrille"). Holden (A Collection of Old Established Irish Slow and Quick Tunes), pg.
10. O'Neill (Irish Folk Music), pg.
341. O’Neill (Waifs and Strays of Gaelic
Melody), 1922; No. 85.

HUMOURS OF LISTOWEL [2].AKA and see “Ken Fahey’s.” Irish,
Jig. A Dorian. Standard tuning. AABB. The earliest appearance of the tune in
print is in Church of Ireland cleric James Goodman’s mid-19th
century music manuscripts. Goodman (1828-1896) was an uilleann piper, and an
Irish speaker who collected locally in County Cork and elsewhere in Munster. He
also obtained tunes from manuscripts and printed collections. The melody
appears in modern time in Bulmer & Sharpley’s Music from Ireland (vol. 4,
1976) sourced to flute player Ken Fahey, by whose name they call it. Bulmer
& Sharpley (Music from Ireland),
1976, vol. 4, No. 55 (appears as Ken Fahey’s). Shields/Goodman (Tunes of the Munster Pipers), 1998; No.
431, pg. 169.

Loughrea is
a market town in County Galway, on the northern shore of Lough (lake) Rea. The
area is rich in history from prehistoric times on; there is a domen (a
prehistoric stone-slab monument), souterrains (underground passages and
chambers), and two ruined towers. Crannogs, or prehistoric stockaded islands,
have been found in the lake. The modern town dates from 1236 when the
Anglo-Norman Knight Richard de Burgo (or de Burgh) built a castle there.
Loughrea, like most of Connaught, is linked with the fortunes of the powerful
de Burgh family. The founder of this house, William de Burgo or ‘William the
Conqueror’ as he became known had obtained a grant of land in Munster. During
the reign of Richard 1, Prince John made a speculative grant of the whole or
part of Connaught to William de Burgo. At the time it was the property of
Roderic O’Connor, the High King of Ireland and so the de Burgos had first to
conquer and then fight to retain the land. William’s son Richard enclosed the
town of Galway and under him it was settled by the Norman families, the
‘Tribes’ of Galway. While he had castles at Meelick on the Shannon, Galway and
Portumna, his principal manor was at Loughrea. The remains of a medieval castle and friary
and the old town fortifications can still be seen, and Loughrea has a Roman
Catholic cathederal built between 1900 and 1905. The area was hard-hit in the
Great Famine of 1847, and many industries disappeared. The town’s population
dropped from 5,453 in 1841 to 3,651 in 1851 due to loss of life and
emmigration.

HUMOURS OF NEWTOWN [1], THE.Irish,
Jig. G Major. Standard tuning. AABB. The ‘A’ part of this jig is a 6/8 time
version of “The Greenfields of
America [1],” although the second parts differ. The melody appears in
Church of Ireland cleric James Goodman’s mid-19th century music
manuscripts. Goodman (1828-1896) was an uilleann piper, and an Irish speaker
who collected locally in County Cork and elsewhere in Munster. He also obtained
tunes from manuscripts and printed collections. Shields/Goodman (Tunes of the Munster Pipers), 1998; No.
457, pg. 180.

X:1

T:Humours of Newtown, The [1]

M:6/8

L:1/8

R:Jig

S:James Goodman manuscripts (mid-19th
century)

B:Hugh Shields – Tunes of the Munster Pipers, No.
457(1998)

K:G

cec BdB|AGA BGE|DGG GDG|AGA BGE|cec
BdB|

AGA BGE|DGG AGA|BGG G3::dge dcB|ddd
edB|

dge dcB|edc BGG|dge dcB|ddd edB|DGG
AGA|BGG G3:|

HUMOURS OF NEWTOWN [2], THE.Irish, Jig. B Minor/D Major. Standard tuning. AABBCCDD. The ‘A’ part is
in B minor, although the rest of the tune is in D major. Only the third part is
shared with Goodman’s “Humours of Newtown [1]” (being the first part of
Goodman’s tune). Kennedy (Jigs & Quicksteps, Trips & Humours),
1997; No. 67, pg. 17.

HUMORS OF PASSAGE, THE (Sugra Na Intaig). Irish, Jig. E Minor. Standard
tuning. AABB. Passage West (An Pasáiste
Thiar) is a village in County Cork on Cork Harbor on the Atlantic ocean, near
Monkstown. It has been a primary spot for sea bathing since the 19th
century. The earliest appearance of the tune in print is in Church of Ireland
cleric James Goodman’s mid-19th century music manuscripts. Goodman
(1828-1896) was an uilleann piper, and an Irish speaker who collected locally
in County Cork and elsewhere in Munster. He also obtained tunes from
manuscripts and printed collections. Kennedy (Jigs & Quicksteps,
Trips & Humours), 1997; No. 68, pg. 18. O’Farrell (Pocket
Companion, vol. III), c. 1808; pg. 12. O'Neill (Music of Ireland: 1850 Melodies), 1903/1979; No. 940, pg. 175.
Shields/Goodman (Tunes of the Munster
Pipers), 1998; No. 454, pg.179. .

HUMOURS OF REKEN. English, Jig. England, Northumberland. D Major/Mixolydian. Standard
tuning. AABB. Editor Seattle was not able to locate another version of this
tune in any other manuscript available to him, thought he suggests
"Wrekin" or "Wrekenton" are "possibilities" for
"Reken." Seattle (William
Vickers), 1987, Part 2; No. 232.

HUMOURS OF SIX MILE
BRIDGE, THE. AKA and see Irish, Reel. G Major.
Standard tuning. AAB. Six Mile Bridge is a place-name in County Clare. Kennedy
gives alternate titles as “The Banks
of the Ilen” and “Six Mile Bridge,”
although they appear to me to be distanced variants. Kennedy (Traditional Dance Music of Britain and
Ireland: Reels and Rants), 1997; No. 71, pg. 19.

HUMOURS OF STRAND ROAD, THE.Irish, Jig. A version of this tune appears in
Brendan Breathnach’s Ceol Rince na
hÉireann IV (1996), as an untitled jig (No. 17) from the Stephen Grier
collection (Grier was a piper and fiddler from Farnaught, County Leitrim, who
composed his manuscript in the early 1880’s). Some similarity in parts to “The Top of Cork Road” or “Father
O’Flynn.”

HUMORS
OF TALLOW. Irish, Double Jig. A Dorian.
Standard tuning. AABB. Tallow, from the Irish Tulach an Iarainn (Hill of Iron), is a village in County Waterford
on the Glenaboy River, near where it joins the Bride, on the Cork-Waterford
border. It was established around the 14th century, and there exists
a ruined keep nearby, Lisfinny Castle, once the stronghold of the Fitzgeralds.
O’Neill’s source is undoubtedly O’Farrell, who included many place-names from
County Waterford throughout his volumes. Kennedy (Jigs &
Quicksteps, Trips & Humours), 1997; No. 70, pg. 18. O’Farrell (Pocket
Companion, vol. IV), 1810; pg. 106. O'Neill (O’Neill’s Irish Music), 1915/1987; No. 200, pg. 107.

K:G

HUMOURS OF THE BATH. AKA and see “Bath Medley,” "The Spring's A‑Coming."
English, Country Dance and Air (6/8 time). E Flat Major. Standard. AB. The tune
appears in Watts' Musical Miscellany
(1729), Playford's Dancing Master (vol.
iii), Walsh's Dancing Master (vol.
iii), and The Wedding and numerous
other ballad operas. See note for “Bath Medley” for more on the town of Bath,
England, which is referenced in this double-entendre title. Chappell (Popular Music of the Olden Time), vol.
2, 1859; pg. 177.

HUMOURS OF TOOMAGH [2], THE. Irish, Reel. C Major. A variant of [1] (or
vice versa). The tune is in circulation in the key below (‘C’) as well as the
key of ‘D’ major, however, Taylor (1992) says the 'C' version is "not
quite" the same version he gives.

HUMORS OF TUFTS STREET. AKA and see “Cuffe Street,” “The Humours of Cuffe Street.” Irish, Reel. E
Dorian. Standard tuning. AABB. New York musician, writer and researcher Don
Meade identifies this tune as a version of “Reel
of Bogie,” and says it was recorded by the group Altan under the title “Old Cuffe Street.” Tufts Street is
in Cambridge, Boston, Massachusetts, named after Peter Tufts (1774-1825), a
surveyor, whose house was on the corner of Magazine Street. Cole (1000 Fiddle Tunes), 1940; pg. 11. Ryan’s Mammoth Collection, 1883; pg. 35.

HUMOURS OF
TULLYCREEN/TULLYCRINE, THE. AKA and see “Bobby Casey’s Hornpipe,” "Chuir mé Feisteas ar mo
Theachsa," “The Stream of the
Cat” (Sruthán a’ Chait).Irish, Hornpipe. A Dorian. Standard tuning.
AABB. Tullycrine (a townland outside Kilrush) is close to Ennis, the “county
town” of Clare, and indeed, according to Gearoid O’ hAllmhurain, the tune is
very much associated with West Clare. The melody was in the repertoire of Clare
fiddler Junior Crehan, who was fond of it, and who called it “Sruthán an
Chait.” It was associated with blind piper Garrett Barry (1847-1899) of Inagh.
Breathnach (CRÉ I) printed a version
of the tune under the title “Chuir mé Feisteas ar mo Theachsa,” from the line
in a song sung to the melody, “I furnished up my house as well as I was able…”
Seán Keane’s father played the tune as a reel. Claddagh
CC17, Seán Keane ‑ "Gusty's Frolics" (1975). Drumlin Records
BMNCD2, Brian McNamara – “Fort of the Jewels” (2004).

HUMOURS OF WAPPING, THE. English, Hornpipe. B Flat Major. Standard
tuning. AABB. The melody was originally published in R. Baldwin’s periodical London
Magazine, or Gentleman’s Monthly Intelligencer (1756), followed by an
appearance in John Johnson’s Two Hundred Favourite Country Dances, vol.
8 (London, 1758). It was later published by Charles and Samuel Thompson in
their Compleat Collection, vol. 3 (London, 1773). It was entered into the
American music manuscript copybooks of fiddlers John and William Pitt Turner
(Norwich, Conn., 1780) and Daniel Aborn (1790), and the English manuscript of
Thomas Hammersley (London, 1790) and William Vickers (Northumberland, 1770).
The melody can be heard played by the mechanism a clock made by Bucks County,
Pensylvania, clockmaker Joseph Ellicott (c. 1770’s). The title comes from a
play called “The Constant Quaker, or The Humours of Wapping,” which was a
“droll” at Bartholemew Fair. A droll being a stock stage entertainment in which
humorous scenes or parts of plays were interposed with singing and dancing.
Seattle (William Vickers), 1987, Part
3; No. 438. Thompson (Compleat Collection of 200 Favourite Country
Dances, vol. 3), 1773; No. 86.

HUMORS OF WHISKEY [1], THE (Sugra Na Uisge-Beata). Irish, Double Jig. D Major.
Standard. AABB. This air bears a general resemblance to the "Maid(en) on the Green" group of
tunes, according to Bayard (1981). Flood (1906) reports that it was recorded by
the Belfast Northern Star of July
15th, 1792, as one of the tunes having been played in competition by one of ten
Irish harp masters at the last great ancient Irish harpers convocation, the Belfast
Harp Festival, held that week. See also "Aoibhneas Eilis Ní
Cheallaigh." O'Neill (Krassen), 1976; pg. 23. O'Neill (Music of
Ireland: 1850 Melodies), 1903/1979; No. 784, pg. 146. O'Neill (Dance
Music of Ireland: 1001 Gems),
1907/1986; No. 61, pg. 26.

HUMORS OF WHISKEY [3]. AKA and see “The High Road
to Dublin [2],” “Sally Hegarty’s”
Irish, Slip Jig. G Major. Standard. AABB. This version of “Humours of Whisky”
(it shares the second part) was also recorded by Altan. Donegal fiddler John
Doherty called the tune “Sally Hegarty’s.” Feldman & O'Doherty (The Northern Fiddler), 1979; pg. 61.

HUMOURS OF WINNINGTON. Irish, Jig. G Major. Standard. AABB. The ‘B’ part is shared with the
tunes “The Humours of Ballinaraheen,”
and with the “Bottle of Punch”
family of tunes. Source for notated version: "From Mr. MacDowell. Winnington
or Winningtown is in Wexford" (Joyce). Joyce (Old Irish Folk Music and Song), 1909; No. 677, pg. 339.

HUMOURS
OF WOODSTOWN. Irish, Slip Jig. E Minor. Standard.
AABB. Some similarity in melodic contour to “Dever the Dancer.” Woodstown is
the name of a village near Waterford, and another of the several place-names
from County Waterford contained in O’Farrell’s volumes. Such is the frequency
that one can only conclude O’Farrell was from that county or had meaningful
connections to it. Kennedy (Fiddler’s
Tune-Book: Slip Jigs and Waltzes), 1999; No. 32, pg. 8. O’Farrell (Pocket Companion, vol. IV), c. 1810; pg.
102.

HUMP MY LADY. English, Country Dance Tune (cut time). E Flat Major. Standard tuning.
AABB. The tune is from a large MS collection of country dance and other airs
from a Leeds (Yorkshire) musician written down about 1820. Kidson explains that
a hump-backed person used to be called "My Lord" or "My
Lady." Kidson (Old English Country
Dances), 1890; pg. 20.

HUMPHREY'S JIG [1]. AKA and see "Doctor
Humphrey's Jig." Old‑Time, Breakdown. USA, Kentucky. G Major.
Standard tuning. AA'BB'. A popular tune (whose 'A' part is in duple time and
whose 'B' part is in triple time--apparently a cross between a breakdown and a
jig--) with Kentucky fiddlers especially in the (north)eastern portion of the
state, drawn from a Scottish tune called "Bob of Fettercairn," and
not easy to play. Mark Wilson and Guthrie Meade (1976) point out that east
Kentucky fiddler Ed
Hayley's (or Haley) version of the tune resembles not the mainland Scottish
versions but rather a Shetland version of the melody called "Knockit
Corn." Regardless, they say, it is extremely rare for a tune "of this
nature to survive in the American South, where the original dance function of
the music has been forgotten."

***

Fiddler Wilson Douglas (W.Va.)
declared in 1995:

***

I've only heard one man who I thought would come up to Ed

Hayley, and I believe he died a year or two ago. A man
named

George Hawkins from Ashland, Kentucky. I'd put him and Ed

Hayley together, you couldn't tell 'em apart. He and Ed Hayley's

the only two men I heard could play the tune "Humphrey's Jig."

I never got a chance to learn it.

***

Kentucky fiddler J.W. Day recorded
the tune twice for the Library of Congress, and George Hawkins, also of that
state, also released a version on a 78 RPM. Douglas stated the tune was in old
Saul Carpenter's (Clay County, West Virginia) repertoire, and was handed down
to his son, Tom, who taught it to his son, the regionally influential French
Carpenter (d. 1965), a distant relative and mentor of Douglas. Source for
notated version: John Hartford [Phillips]. Phillips (Traditional American Fiddle Tunes, vol. 1), 1994; pg. 116. Rounder 1010, Ed Hayley - "Parkersburg Landing"
(1976).

HUMPTY DUMPTY [1]. Irish, Jig. D Major. Standard tuning. AABB. Supposedly this was the
first tune fiddler John Vesey learned from his father which he referred to as
‘Daddy's (Da’s/Pa’s) Knee, and it was picked up from him by Philadelphia
musicians who termed it “Dad's Jig.”

HUMPTY DUMPTY [2]. Irish, Jig. The tune is a variant of “The Kinnegad Slashers,” played as
part of the Dingle Wren tradition by fife and drum band. The tune was
transcribed by Steve MacDonogh in his book “Green and Gold,” that used the 1982
Wren event as an opportunity to explore historic and folklore background of the
tradition.